A Name and Nothing More
by Lucky Kutsick
Summary: Sarah is concerned for her brother, but Tim doesn't see the problem.


_Hey guys! Ok, so I had to write this after reading a story (not gonna mention any names) where Tim gets all upset and depressed because everyone's always calling him "Probie" or "McGee" and never "Tim". To be honest, it got on my nerves. So, here's how I believe Tim feels about his various names. _

_Oh, and here, have some Sarah, just cause..._

_Hope you enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I own no part of NCIS, including characters used in the following story. _

_x.x.x.x.x_

"Doesn't it bother you?"

Tim cast his passenger a glance out of the corner of his eye. Sarah was staring at him with a pondering look. It was a look he knew well. It screamed that she was trying to figure him out, to figure out a secret, unexplored part of his soul.

He hated when she did this.

"You mean your ability to embarrass me in front of anyone and everyone?" he asked jokingly. "Yes, yes it does."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Hey, you're the one who decided to bring me to Jimmy and Breena's housewarming party. And that's not what I meant."

"Then whatever do you mean, sister dearest?" Tim mocked.

"Doesn't it bother you that they don't use your name?"

Tim frowned in confusion. "Um… What?"

The heavy sigh of a long suffering sister floated across the car's interior. "You know, for a genius your kinda stupid."

"You really need to update your arsenal of insults," Tim informed her. "I've heard that one a dozen times."

"You know what I meant," Sarah accused. "That whole time at the party I never once heard the name Tim. With the exception of Dr. Mallard calling you Timothy and that one moment Abby called you Timmy, no one called you by your first name."

"Your point?"

"Shouldn't that bother you?" Sarah asked, shifting in her seat to get a better look at her brother. "It is your name you know. I just thought that the with the way you talk about them all they'd respect you more than that."

Tim was quiet for a moment. Sarah said nothing as she watched him do nothing more than blink and drive. She knew she had struck a chord in him, one that he himself would have never discovered. She knew from the way he just sat a stared, just like when he was caught up thinking about a new, conflicting concept in his theory. He must not have thought about how much disrespect his team was – wait… why was he smiling?

The corners of Tim's mouth were curling upward. Then the smile reached his eyes as his teeth made an appearance. Before long he was laughing a full laugh with one arm wrapped around his abdomen in support. He gasped for breath between each burst, and Sarah was momentarily afraid with him at the wheel. Eventually he calmed down, using his hand to brush away the tears that had come to his eyes.

"What's so funny?" Sarah demanded.

"That's it? _That's_ your big revelation?" Tim chuckled. "What my teammates call me?"

"What do mean that's it?" Sarah asked indignantly. "It's a good point! You've worked with them for years! Shouldn't they at least have the decency to call you by your name?"

"They do call me by my name," Tim said, still slightly laughing. "Is not McGee my name?"

"No," his sister argued. "It's _our_ name. A _family_ name."

"It's still just a name," he reminded her.

"It's not just a name, Tim," Sarah snorted. "A name is something to be proud of, and socially calling someone by a certain name implies certain connotations. Usually calling someone by their last name infers a lack of a personal connection, meaning they don't know you very well! A name is something that sets you apart! It means so much more than just a way to refer to someone!"

Tim's smile became a little less amused and a little more understanding. "A name is a name, Sarah, nothing more. It doesn't set us apart. If anything, it groups us together. If a name defined us, I would be the same as every other Timothy, and you would be the same as every Sarah." He turned and gave his sister a reassuring look. "I'm still the same person, no matter what I'm called. And no matter what my team calls me – whether it be Tim, Timothy, McGee, McGeek, or Probie – they all come with the same understanding and respect that everyone on the team shares." He turned his head back towards the road ahead. A soft, reminiscent glean shone in his eyes. "Although you are right when it comes to connotations of names, they never disregard the close bond we share. Gibbs may call us different names from time to time, but it's nothing but an attention grabber. Just because my first name happens to be used for the shock factor does not mean I'm placed any lower than anyone else." He glanced once again at Sarah. "Get my point?"

Sarah frowned and looked away. "I suppose."

Tim shook his head at her pouting. "I really don't care what I'm called. McGee is every bit a part of who I am as Tim or Probie." He grinned as a list of all the McGee nicknames Tony had assigned him poured through his mind. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

x.x.x.x.x

_Hope you liked it! Reviews please?_


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